Fire arms cleaning tool

ABSTRACT

A rotatable scraping tool having a plurality of scraping edges is provided for removing built-up carbon deposits from the interior of a fire arm. The scraping edges normally converge to facilitate insertion of the tool and are displaced outwardly to the scraping position by an axially movable plug having cam means.

United States Patent 9] Schneider et a1.

[451 Oct. 16, 1973 FIRE ARMS CLEANING TOOL Inventors: Frank P. Schneider, 2853 Janet Ave., North Bellmore; Roger L. Munz, PO. Box 229A, Jarnesport, both of N.Y.

Filed: Sept. 20, 1971 Appl. No.: 181,890

US. Cl. 15/104.18 Int. Cl. F411: 31/00, B08b 9/02 Field of Search 15/104.1, 104.18,

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 6/1891 Clynick 15/104.18

484,487 10/1892 Wunderlich 15/l04.l8

529,798 11/1894 Lawrence et a1, l5/104.l8

FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 175,606 10/1906 Germany 15/l04.18

Primary Examiner-Edward L. Roberts Attorney-Leonard H. King [5 7] ABSTRACT A rotatable scraping tool having a plurality of scraping edges is provided for removing built-up carbon deposits from the interior of a fire arm. The scraping edges normally converge to facilitate insertion of the tool and are displaced outwardly to the scraping position by an axially movable plug having cam means.

4 Claims, 9 DrawingFigures Patented Oct. 16, 1973 3,765,045

4.2 1 22 44 21 36 FIG. 3

/16 x 26 III' II I ,1 I I I 32 I Ask 8 28 24 21 30 INVENTORS FIG. 6 FIG. 7 f l s w er ATTORNEY 1 FIRE ARMS CLEANING TOOL This invention relates generally to fire arms and more particularly to an improved cleaning device therefor.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION With high speed fire arms, particularly those intended for use in environments such as a combat zone, it is absolutely essential that the interior of the fire arm be kept clean. With conventional weapons this is a problem that can be resolved by periodic cleaning done, more or less, at the convenience of the combat soldier. However, with the more modern weapons, such as the Ml6 for example, the rate of fire power capability is in the order of 600/700 rounds per minute and the heat generated is so great that carbon deposits build up in the interior of the weapon, particularly in the chamber, over relatively short periods of time. Accordingly, cleaning must be done at more frequent and shorter intervals. Obviously, an infantryman in combat cannot thoroughly clean his weapon at his convenience, at least not with the equipment heretofore available. As a result of the rapid carbon build-up there have been an ever increasing number of incidences of the-M-l6 jamming under combat-conditions and becoming inoperative. j

Carbon deposits in the chamber of the M-l6 rifle is such a serious problem that Change No. l of the Department of the Army Field Manual No. FM23-9 issued in February, 1968 suggests the replacement of the entire weapon if the chamber becomes dirty or badly pitted.

lt is readily apparent then that'some means must be found to clean the weapon other than by the use of oil and swabs or metallic filament brushes. In the past when thick layers of carbon deposits formed about the parts of the firing mechanism, as a result of the high velocity, high temperature gasses, the weapon could not provide sufficient force to move the bolt back so as to pick up a second round'after one has been fired. This resulted in a jam and it was then necessary to pull the bolt back manually for the firing of succeeding rounds. However, continued manual operation of the weapon is of course contrary to its primary function of rapid fire. As soon as it was practical the infantryman had to use a cleaning solvent and a bore brush to remove the carbon.

In spite of the fact that weapon failure is a direct result of carbon build-up,- theinfantryman could not conveniently clean the weapon frequently enough and with sufficient care. This isentirely understandable when the circumstances of the usage of the weapon are considered. In addition, the cleaning tools such as the container of solvent and the wire brush'were awkward to carry around, frequently were lost and at other times were damaged or wasted. As regards the wire brush cleaner in particular, it has been found that the bristles bend out of shape and frequently break off inside the rifle thereby impeding movement of the mechanisms. Accordingly, the net result was that the weapons were not cleaned sufficiently andwithin relatively short intervals.

The present invention is directed to correcting the shortcomings-by providing an effective cleaning tool that does not require the use of a solvent. Instead, a small, compact device includes cutting edges which will instead ream the carbon deposits by scraping action.

The tool is very small and light weight making it easy to carry and convenient to use. The tool comprising the present invention can be molded very inexpensively and can be provided with a thread at one end for an attachment to a cleaning rod. After the basic components which in the M-l6 comprise the barrel and receiver, bolt arm assembly, stock and trigger housing, are snapped apart in a conventional manner, the tool is inserted into the chamber and rotated. Resilient fingers having specially shaped and oriented cutting edges scrape the interior wall and remove the carbon and dirt that have become almost welded to the chamber walls as a result of the heat and pressure generated during normal firing. This periodic and frequent removal of contaminants inhibits pitting of the chambers and minimizes the likelihood of the deterioration of the chamber. I

The present invention is both structurally and functionally distinguished from a previously filed application, Ser. No. 819,212, filed on Apr. 25, 1969, and now US. Pat. No. 3,602,935. The structure of the previous application required the tool to be inserted through the spline-like recesses in the rifle cylinder. By way of contrast, the structure of this invention provides that the tool can be inserted without regard to orientation and is expanded by a cam-like action in order to engage the surfaces that are to be cleaned.

Accordingly, it is a primary object of this invention to provide an improved tool for cleaning the interior of rapid fire weapons.

It is another object of this invention to provide a tool for cleaning the interior of a fire arm chamber by means of a scrapingaction.

Another object of this invention is to provide a tool as described above wherein there is provided at least one axially elongated finger having radially oriented scraping edges.

It is another object of this invention to provide a tool as described above wherein the fingers andthe scraping edges thereof are offset with respect to each other in the direction of their rotation.

It is a particular object of this invention to provide a cleaning tool as described above wherein at least two of said fingers are provided 180 apart. 7 v

A specific object of this invention is provide a tool as described above wherein the dimension across the scraping edges is normally less than the dimension across the area to be scraped in order to facilitate insertion of the tool, the fingers being displaceable to a scraping position by means of an axially movable p'lug having a cam surface that engages eachjof the scraping fingers.

These and other objects, features andadvantages of the invention will, in part, be pointed out with particu- DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIG. 1 is a fragmentary perspective view partially broken away illustrating a weapon for whichthe present invention is particularly adapted;

FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view illustrating the present invention positioned in the interior of certain components of the weapon shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an end view of the rifle cylinder;

FIG. 4 is a side elevational view of the tool comprising this invention;

FIG. 5 is an end view of the tool shown in FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a plan view of the tool shown in FIG. 4;

FIG. 7 is a sectional side elevational view of the tool as shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 8 is an end view of the tool shown in FIG. 2; and

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the prior art cleaning tool that has been recommended by the Department of the Army.

Referring now to FIG. 1 of the drawing, the basic components of the weapon, the M-l6 rifle, will now be briefly described in order to establish the environment of the present invention.

The weapon 10 includes a barrel 12 having a chamber 14 and a bore 15 for receiving the projectile 16. The chamber 14 also includes an external thread at the rearward end thereof for receiving a cylinder 18 having a series of axially directed and angularly spaced apart flutes or spline-like recesses 19 (FIG. 3). The bolt (not shown) is provided, in a well known manner, with a plurality of axially directed and angularly spaced aparts ribs arranged to mate with the recesses 19. In combination with a reduced internal diameter 22 the recesses 19 define a plurality of teeth 21 having radially and angularly extending surfaces 24 and 26, respectively. The reduced diameter 22 terminates at a shoulder 28 which defines the end of the internal threads and which also represents the transverse end plane of the chamber 14 in the assembled condition.

The chamber 14 and the cylinder 18 are the components of the rifle 10 with which the present invention is primarily concerned. These two basic components are shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 together with the cleaning tool 30 therefor. As is best shown in FIG. 2, the cleaning tool 30 is inserted into the cylinder 18 and the chamber 14 from a rearward direction when the weapon has been disassembled in an appropriate manner.

In its broadest aspect, the rifle cleaning tool 30 comprising the present invention includes a flat body portion 32 defined by spaced apart parallel legs 34 that are connected-at the right hand end by a transverse web 36. The opposite end of the body portion is unconnected and includes, from right to left, a first angularly oriented scraping edge 30, a first axially oriented scraping edge 40, a first radially oriented scraping edge 42, a second axially oriented scraping edge 44, a second radially oriented scraping edge 46, and a second angularly oriented scraping edge 48. The body portion 32 is conveniently molded of a suitable plastic such as Delrin, polycarbonates or nylon. It should be particularly noted, for example in FIG. 4, that the legs 34 converge towards each other in the direction towards the scraping edge. The purpose for this will be brought out more fully hereinafter.

The rifle cleaning tool 30 is further comprised of a plug member generally designated by the reference character 50 and includes a steam portion 52 that slidably extends through the transverse wall 36 of the body portion 32. The stem 52 is readily coupled by means of threads 53 or other suitable fastening means to a rod 54 that includes an enlarged head portion 56. A cylindrical body 58 is formed integrally with and on the opposite side of the head portion 56 and includes two axially oriented channels 60 that are tapered from a minimum depth adjacent the head portion 56 to a maximum depth at the end of the body portion 58. The outermost longitudinal edges 62 of the channels 60 constitute scraping edges for the bore 15 in the chamber 14. The plug 50 may also be molded of a suitable plastic such as Delrin, polycarbonates or nylon.

It should be particularly noted, for example in FIG. 4, that the legs 34 are initially molded so that they converge in a direction towards the scraping edges. The maximum dimension D" across the legs 34 is not greater than the diameter across the recesses 19. Further, the minimum dimension d, is only slightly less than the diameter across the teeth 21. Thus, it is a very simple matter to insert the tool from the right as viewed in FIG. 2 and it is no longer necessary to align the tool with the recesses 19. Once the tool is inserted the plug member 50 is moved axially to the left to the position shown in FIG. 2 and in FIG. 7. This causes the inwardly facing, axially oriented edges64 of the body member 32 to, move radially outward as the tapered slots 60 become shallower. In effect, the tapered slots 60 act as cams and urge the cutting edges radially outward. At its maximum leftward position, the cylindrical body portion 58 is in engagement with the axial edges 64 so that the scraping edges are in intimate contact with those surfaces from which the carbon deposits are to be removed. In actual practice, when the plug member is in the extreme leftward position, the legs 34 are bowed slightly inwardly as shown in somewhat exaggerated form in FIG. 7. This adds to the scraping tension.

After the tool 30 is inserted through the cylinder 18 and into the bore 15 of the chamber 14, as described above, it is rotated in the usual manner. The scraping surfaces 38, 40 and 42 clean all surfaces of the teeth 21. The scraping surfaces 44 clean the reduced internal diameter 22 while the scraping surfaces 46 and 48 clean the transverse end face of the chamber 12'; While it may be possible to effect a suitable cleaning action with only one set of scraping surfaces 38-48, because of the rotational action of the tool, it is preferred to have at least two diametrically opposed sets of cleaning surfaces 38-48. v t

In FIG. 9 there is shown the prior art cleaning tool that has been recommended heretofore. The priorart device comprises a wire stem 72 on which is helically wound a first wire brush 74 having a diameter sized to mate with the bore 15 of the chamber l4. Rearwardly of the brush 74 is a second wire brush 76 having a relatively large diameter to clean the diameter 22and the recesses 19. The problems with the prior art device 70 were that the brushes 74 and 76 could not be relied on to clean all surfaces and crevices. Also, it has been found that the bristles of the brushes 74 and 76 either bent or broke off and remained in the chamber 14 unnoticed until the rifle jammed.

From the foregoing it will be evident then that an improved cleaning tool has been provided, particularly for the M-l6 rifle. It is no longer necessary to use a cleaning solvent and a brush which, in the past, was ineffective because an excess of the solvent was frequently used and because the bristles frequently wore down or broke off inside of the rifle chamber. The scraping tool comprising the present invention can very easily be inserted into the cylinder without regard for its orientation with the spline-like recesses therein. Once inserted, the tool can be expanded by the simple, axially inward movement of the plug. When properly positioned the cutting edges of the scraping tool accurately fit the interior of the rifle chamber where carbon deposits are likely to accumulate. Upon rotation of the cutting tool the various scraping edges remove the cake-on carbon deposits from the interior walls. Because the cleaning tool is of rigid nature, the cutting edges can be located so as to engage hidden corners, crevices and recesses that were heretofore inaccessible to either a bristle type cleaning tool or a swab. The positive engagement and the resilient nature of the cleaning tool of this invention assures that all interior surfaces will be completely cleaned of carbon as opposed to the prior method where such complete cleaning could not be assured.

There has been disclosed heretofore the best embodiment of the invention presently contemplated. If is to be understood, however, that various changes or modifications may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the invention.

What is claimed as new and is desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

1. A cleaning tool for the interior surfaces of a rifle, said cleaning tool comprising a body portion characterized by a pair of spaced leg portions, a plurality of scraping edges formed integrally with at least one of said leg portions proximate one end thereof, said scraping edges being oriented correspondingly to the surfaces of the rifle to be cleaned and initially having a dimension in the radial direction that is less than the smallest size diameter of the rifle chamber and means for moving such scraping edges in a radially outward direction to thereby engage the surfaces to be cleaned after the tool is inserted, wherein said means for moving said scraping edges comprises a plug member slidable axially relative to said body portion intermediate the legs thereof, said plug member including cam means for causing outward movement of said scraping edges when said plug member slides axially, and said cam means comprises at least one radially facing axially extending slot defined by side wall and base wall means, the slot being formed in said plug member, the depth of the slot increasing in a direction away from the end of the cylinder in which said tool is inserted, the radially inner portion of said scraping edges being slidably received within the slot.

2. The cleaning tool in accordance with claim 1 wherein there are two of said cam means located apart, and wherein there are two of each of said scraping edges located 180 apart.

3. The cleaning tool in accordance with claim 1 wherein the axially extending outermost edges of said slots define scraping edges for the bore of the rifle.

4. The cleaning tool in accordance with claim 1 wherein said plug member is coaxial with the bore of rifle and is substantially cylindrical approximate the shallow end of said slot, the inner portion of said scraping edges resting on said cylindrical section when said scraping edges are in contact with the surfaces of the rifle to be cleaned. 

1. A cleaning tool for the interior surfaces of a rifle, said cleaning tool comprising a body portion characterized by a pair of spaced leg portions, a plurality of scraping edges formed integrally with at least one of said leg portions proximate one end thereof, said scraping edges being oriented correspondingly to the surfaces of the rifle to Be cleaned and initially having a dimension in the radial direction that is less than the smallest size diameter of the rifle chamber and means for moving such scraping edges in a radially outward direction to thereby engage the surfaces to be cleaned after the tool is inserted, wherein said means for moving said scraping edges comprises a plug member slidable axially relative to said body portion intermediate the legs thereof, said plug member including cam means for causing outward movement of said scraping edges when said plug member slides axially, and said cam means comprises at least one radially facing axially extending slot defined by side wall and base wall means, the slot being formed in said plug member, the depth of the slot increasing in a direction away from the end of the cylinder in which said tool is inserted, the radially inner portion of said scraping edges being slidably received within the slot.
 2. The cleaning tool in accordance with claim 1 wherein there are two of said cam means located 180* apart, and wherein there are two of each of said scraping edges located 180* apart.
 3. The cleaning tool in accordance with claim 1 wherein the axially extending outermost edges of said slots define scraping edges for the bore of the rifle.
 4. The cleaning tool in accordance with claim 1 wherein said plug member is coaxial with the bore of rifle and is substantially cylindrical approximate the shallow end of said slot, the inner portion of said scraping edges resting on said cylindrical section when said scraping edges are in contact with the surfaces of the rifle to be cleaned. 